Confidence among entrepreneurs has increased slightly this month. Producer confidence rose from 3.3 in December to 3.6 in January. This was reported by Statistics Netherlands. Entrepreneurs were particularly positive about the position of orders. “This is good considering that initially there was a fear of a recession,” says CBS chief economist Peter Hein van Mulligen.
Producer confidence is above the long-term average of 1.2. Business confidence reached its peak in November 2021 (12.7). The lowest value (-28.7) was recorded in April 2020. Entrepreneurs in the sector don’t really feel the fear of the recession, says Van Mulligen. “They’re negative on stocks, which are quite large, but there’s also improvement.”
Germany is also positive
Van Mulligen calls it remarkable that international sentiment is also good. “Recessions in the Netherlands tend to come from abroad, so that’s a good thing.” The confidence of German entrepreneurs in the sector improved further in January. This is because they were more positive about their current business situation. German producers were also less negative about the future business situation. According to Destatis, the average daily production of German industry was 0.5% higher in November than a year earlier.
Wood and construction are getting better
Van Mulligen also sees an improvement in branch sentiment within the industry: ‘Especially wood and building materials, they don’t seem to care.’ Where things are not going well: oil, chemical, food and graphics. ‘Sentiment is still negative, perhaps high prices play a role there, but there is also a light at the end of the tunnel for these branches.’
Van Mulligen observes the same trend in the trend of producer prices as that of consumer prices. ‘The price increase is still high, but even that was higher. The effect of falling energy prices is also seen there, which translates into lower producer prices. Apparently we get away with a few unhurt.’
Source: BNR
Andrew Dwight is an author and economy journalist who writes for 24 News Globe. He has a deep understanding of financial markets and a passion for analyzing economic trends and news. With a talent for breaking down complex economic concepts into easily understandable terms, Andrew has become a respected voice in the field of economics journalism.
